Episode 3426

Elmo and Ruthie welcome the viewer to Sesame Street. Ruthie explains to Elmo what kind of stuff her store sells - old stuff that people don't need anymore (hence the name "Finders Keepers"). She displays some of her "new old" stuff, including a toy fire engine, and a lemonade pitcher with lemons painted on it. Linda comes by, and seems to really find the pitcher lovely. Elmo tries to get her attention, but Ruthie reminds Elmo that Linda is deaf, and communicates with sign language.

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Ruthie knows a little sign language, so she asks Linda if she likes the pitcher, and Linda does like it. Linda says something else, but Ruthie isn't clear on it, so Linda writes it down. Linda says she doesn't know if she wants to buy the pitcher yet, and will let Ruthie know after she walks Barkley. Linda departs, and Elmo now understands how to communicate with Linda somewhat. He knows how to write a little, but he doesn't know sign language. Ruthie points to the screen and tells him to "watch this ..."

After watching the previous segment, Elmo looks forward to learning sign language. Ruthie goes inside to gather some more treasures to put on display, and Elmo decides to look at what's already outside.

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Barkley and Linda come back to Finders Keepers, so Linda can give the pitcher a second look. Suddenly, Barkley hears a cat, and wants to chase it. Linda tries to hold the big dog steady, and as Barkley pulls her away, she accidentally drops the pitcher, and it shatters on the concrete. Elmo doesn't understand why Linda broke the pitcher she wanted to buy, and ran off without telling Ruthie.

Prairie Dawn hosts "Fairy Tales Today," a talk show about fairy tale characters. Today, she interviews some fairy tale fruits and vegetables, including the beans from "Jack and the Beanstalk," the pumpkin from "Cinderella" and the apple from "Snow White," all of whom agree that they get treated unfairly in each of their stories. Prairie says that fruits and vegetables don't have feelings in the real world, which offends them.(EKA: Episode 3382)

Elmo looks at the broken pitcher on the ground, and still ponders the cause of Linda's actions.

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Ruthie comes outside, just as Linda returns to buy the pitcher. They both find it shattered on the ground, and are both clueless as to why it is broken. In Elmo's mind, Linda is hiding the truth from Ruthie.

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Ruthie asks Elmo if he knows how the pitcher got broken, and Elmo stammers. This causes Ruthie to wonder if Elmo broke the pitcher.

Elmo is put on the spot: he wonders if he should tell Ruthie the truth about the broken pitcher. He assumes Linda doesn't want Ruthie to get angry at her for breaking the pitcher.

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Elmo asks Ruthie what if, hypothetically, someone she knew happened to accidentally break something that belonged to her, and what that person should do. Ruthie tells him a story of the time she broke her uncle's favorite lamp, and felt really bad about it. She eventually told him the truth while holding her breath, and he was proud of her for being honest about the accident.

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Now that Elmo's question has been answered, he goes off to find Linda, leaving Ruthie baffled.

Animation

In a classic painting, a boy blows a bubble. It pops, and some kids yell "Surprise!"(EKA: Episode 3311)

Elmo spots Linda talking to Ruthie about the pitcher. Linda denies any knowledge of what happened to it, so Elmo explains what he witnessed. Ruthie explains to Elmo that since Linda is deaf, she didn't hear the pitcher break as Barkley pulled her away.

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Linda apologizes, and Ruthie offers to take her to Hooper's for an ice cream sundae. Ruthie takes Elmo along with them, as Benny announces the sponsors.